Hyderabad, November 16: A total of 2,290 candidates are set to compete in the upcoming November 30 elections for the 119-member Telangana Assembly.
The Chief Electoral Officer announced that 608 candidates have withdrawn their nominations, marking the conclusion of the withdrawal process on November 15.
Initially, 2,898 candidates had submitted their nominations, with 606 of them being rejected, leaving 2,290 candidates in the electoral race.
Hyderabad’s LB Nagar constituency boasts the highest number of contestants with 48 candidates, closely followed by Gajwel with 44 candidates.
In Gajwel, where Chief Minister and Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) president K. Chandrasekhar Rao seeks re-election, a total of 114 candidates had filed nominations. However, 70 of them subsequently withdrew their nominations, marking the highest number of withdrawals among all constituencies.
KCR is also contesting from Kamareddy constituency, where 39 candidates are in the fray. The chief minister faces competition from Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president A. Revanth Reddy, who is also contesting from his home constituency Kodangal, featuring a field of 13 candidates.
In Gajwel, located in KCR’s home district Siddipet, BJP has fielded its MLA and former minister Eatala Rajender. Eatala Rajender is also contesting from Huzurabad, a seat he won in the by-election as a BJP candidate in 2021. Huzurabad will witness a total of 22 candidates vying for success.
Munugode, where Komatireddy Rajagopal Reddy is the Congress candidate, features 39 contestants. Rajagopal Reddy recently returned to Congress from BJP, having joined last year but lost the by-election from the same seat on the saffron party’s ticket. Paleru (37), Kodada (34), Nampally (34), Khammam (32), Nalgonda (31), and Kottagudem (30).
Constituencies like Banswada, where Speaker Pocharam Srinivas Reddy seeks re-election, and Narayanpet have the lowest number of contestants at 7 each, while Balkonda will see a contest among eight candidates.
Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) is independently contesting all 119 seats, while the Congress has allocated one seat for its ally, CPI. The BJP is contesting 111 seats and has left the remaining seats for its ally, Jana Sena Party. MIM is contesting nine seats and supporting BRS in the remaining constituencies.
